Sleeping
by mtm
Summary: Why doesn't Lisbon seem to be bothered about Jane sleeping on the couch during working hours?


**A/N:** This didn't turn out exactly as I saw it in my head so feedback is much appreciated!

**Sleeping **

It was late at night when Lisbon finally could put her pen down after finishing a huge stack of paperwork. She preferred to do the paperwork for a case in one sitting, that way all the details were still fresh in her mind. She arched her back feeling how the vertebrae popped after being hunched over the desk for such a long time. Only her office still had lights on, every one else had gone home some time ago, leaving the darkness and the silence behind. She didn't mind as it was relaxing after a hard case.

Lisbon stood up collecting her coat and walked out of her office, only to stop in her tracks by the sight in front of her. Jane was lying on the couch, apparently in the grips of a nightmare if the sweat and tears were anything to go by.

Lisbon wasn't sure what to do. Jane wasn't suppose to be here in the first place, she thought he had gone home, but then she didn't know where his home was or where he went when he wasn't at work. She also remembered the old advice not to rouse someone who was having a nightmare. However, she couldn't just walk past the man and leave him. If nothing else, he would be cranky with a sore neck the next morning, which would mean more paperwork for her when he would upset people.

Jane was lying on his back, his head moving from side to side with small, jerking movements. His hands were twitching and his breathing was fast and irregular. He was sweating and at some point he had been crying as Lisbon could see the trails of tears on his cheek.

Lisbon was unsure what would the best approach be, should she kick the couch, shake Jane, call his name, what? In the end she took the same approach as she used to do with her brothers when they had nightmares.

Lisbon sat down on the couch next to Jane's hip and called out his name. He seemed to become more agitated at that, so Lisbon reached out and put a hand on his arm and shook gently.

"Jane, wake up, it's just a nightmare", she called out softly.

Jane's eyes shot open and he jerked out of Lisbon's touch trying to sink deeper into the couch, still breathing erratically looking at Lisbon in panic, not quite fully awake yet.

"It's ok, it's just a nightmare", Lisbon repeated, but being careful not to touch him after his reaction.

Jane's breathing slowed down as he became fully awake and aware of his surrounding, sitting up on the couch.

"Lisbon?", he whispered.

"Yes, it's me. You were having a nightmare and the way you were sleeping you are going to be sore in the morning. Why don't you go home and have some rest?", Lisbon asked him, but was surprised when instead of a typical Jane quip, he looked down and shook his head.

"I can't", Jane answered quietly.

"I can't sleep there. With the empty rooms, with the memories...Whenever the need for sleep becomes too great I just stay and sleep here after you guys have gone home", Jane continued still not looking at Lisbon.

"Please, don't make me leave", he asked, finally lifting his eyes to look at Lisbon and what she saw in his eyes made her speechless. His eyes gave a unhindered view straight into his soul and it was a raw, bleeding mass of seething darkness that stormed behind his eyelids.

Lisbon swallowed and could only nod before the onslaught of emotions he had never before shared. Now she understood why he was napping so often on the couch, he refused to sleep unless absolutely necessary and it looked like he could only do that on his couch. And how many times had she told him off for slacking. She felt nauseous. Why hadn't he said something?

Lisbon hadn't realised that she had asked the question aloud, until Jane gave a sad smile and seemed to make an effort to reign in the battle forging inside him and just shrugged a little.

Lisbon put her hand on his arm again and said, "You don't have to hide from me Jane. I will be here for you if you need it, but I'm not as good as you at reading people. You have to talk to me."

Jane refused to look her in the eyes as he had noticed how it had scared her what she saw in his eyes. He didn't shed his mask often, but he was so tired of keeping it on all the time. He just couldn't trust anyone not to freak out when they saw him for truly what he was, a broken, battered man who was living in his own personal hell every second of his life. Who had lost the will to claw his way out of the torture, but had embraced it losing himself slowly but surely to the madness.

However to his surprise Lisbon didn't leave. She was still sitting next to him, still her hand on his arm. Jane cautiously looked up, straight into Lisbon's dark eyes that were regarding him with resolve and fondness that shook him to his core.

"You will not scare me away. I know you Patrick Jane and I am your friend. I will be here for you." Lisbon said quietly, but with such conviction in her voice that Jane believed her without hesitation. He couldn't do more than stare at Lisbon and hope that she could see it in his eyes how much that meant to him.

"Lie back down", said Lisbon before disappearing back into her office leaving a confused Jane on the couch, but who nonetheless obeyed the command. Lisbon came out carrying a blanket.

"I have kept this in the cupboard since having that cold that made me needing to rest once in a while", Lisbon explained and gently covered Jane with the blanket.

"Go back to sleep", she whispered while pulling the blanket over Jane's shoulders.

"Thank you", Jane said quietly and closed his eyes and Lisbon couldn't help but brush the curl of his hair off of his forehead. She smiled sadly when she felt Jane ever so slightly turning his head towards her touch.

The next day a soft blanket appeared on the couch and never left it.


End file.
